Fractured Loyalties
by Contrail
Summary: Two of the Shitennou evaded Beryl's grasp, and two of the Senshi were corrupted by her. Now the free Shitennou and their prince and the uncorrupted Senshi must struggle to defeat the Dark Kingdom, seperately or together. [UM, SenshiShitennou]
1. Chapter 1

**Fractured Loyalties**  
Chapter 1: A Darker Turn

By Contrail

**Disclaimer:** Sailor Moon was created by Naoko Takeuchi, not me, and I'm using the characters and setting without her permission. I'm not making any money off of this.

**Chronology Note:** While the timeline this story takes place in branches off prior to the beginning of the Sailor Moon series, the events of the first two acts take place as shown in the manga because the changes don't directly affect those events. The first scene takes the place of the first scene of act three, then it jumps forward to the middle of act three, where events will diverge for good.

* * *

Jadeite knelt before Queen Beryl, having just finished his report on what had happened at the Crystal Academy, including the awakening of another Senshi. The two other continental commanders of the Dark Kingdom were standing behind him, having come at his Queen's request to listen to his report first hand.

Silence pervaded the great hall for a time as Queen Beryl consider what he had told her. Finally, she spoke in a stern voice. "Jadeite. That's two failures in a row. You had best be prepared."

Jadeite bowed his head and closed his eyes. "Yes, your Majesty. I apologize."

Nephrite spoke up then, from where he was lounging against a wall behind him, a tumbler half full of wine dangling in one hand. "Your soldiers are puppets made of dirt, after all. That's why they're so fragile." Nephrite chuckled, and Jadeite felt a flash of irritation. His youma could handle any attack an ordinary human could produce. They just weren't designed to handle foes as strong as the Sailor Senshi.

Nephrite moved away from the wall and continued speaking with conviction. "Queen Beryl, entrust this task to me, Nephrite, in charge of the Dark Kingdom's North American division! I will efficiently gather energy for offering to our great ruler, and I will obtain the Phantom Silver Crystal without fail!"

"The Sailor Senshi must be searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal as well, if it is not already in their possession. It was one of the Moon's greatest treasures, they would not leave it in others' hands once they knew of its whereabouts," the third commander mused from where stood apart from the other two, light glinting off his short cap of straight silver hair and knowing pale green eyes. Jadeite always hated the way that man lorded his more extensive memories of their past lives over them, unwilling to just explain things but always dropping tidbits to remind him that he knew more than they did.

Nephrite scowled; He hated the mysterious and all-knowing act even more than Jadeite did. Turning to their Queen, Nephrite broached a question to her. "Queen Beryl, I ask that you tell us. Just what is this Phantom Silver Crystal...?"

Queen Beryl was silent for a few long moments before answering Nephrite's question. "As I understand it, the Phantom Silver Crystal is the stone that is the source of all energy, that carries unfathomable and unlimited power. And the one who obtains it can become ruler of the entire universe." Her voice took on a note of longing when she spoke of the crystal's power.

Her demeanor growing fierce once more, she continued, "There will be no mercy for those who stand in the way of our Dark Kingdom, no matter who they are. Jadeite, head of the Far Eastern division! For now you will postpone the search for the Phantom Silver Crystal! I am going to give you one last chance, Jadeite."

Jadeite knelt before Queen Beryl again, pressing his clenched fist to his heart. "Understood. By my hands, I will eliminate those eyesores, the Sailor Senshi!" He would come up with a plan to defeat them once and for all. He couldn't let a pair of teenage girls defeat him, no matter what powers they held!

* * *

As Usagi walked back down the shrine steps back towards the bus stop with Luna in her arms, she couldn't help dwelling a bit on what she'd just seen. Those people, accusing Rei of causing the kidnappings, just because she didn't think her sixth sense would be able to find where the girls were taken. She could tell that Rei really was concerned about the kidnapped girl and hurt by the accusations. "Poor Rei-chan..." Usagi said to herself.

As if taking that as a signal to start talking, Luna mused aloud, "I can't get a read on the intentions of the enemy. If this is the enemy... They must be searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal, but I can't read their actions."

"The enemy's looking for this Phantom Silver Crystal thing, too?" Usagi asked.

"That's right," Luna confirmed. "But, Usagi-chan. Remember this. The Phantom Silver Crystal absolutely must not fall into the hands of the enemy."

Usagi checked the time on her watch as she continued walking down the street, noting absently that a bus was coming down the street towards them. "So it's getting to be six."

Luna gasped. "Usagi-chan! That bus! It's odd! The destination sign is flashing red!"

Taking a closer look at the bus, Usagi saw that Luna was right. As she continued to watch the bus, she spotted Rei through one of the windows, slumped against it and apparently asleep. _Rei-chan? No way!_ The bus continued on towards a wall, a disturbing looking black hole opening before it. _A hole, a gaping hole in the wall?_

"Is this 'the devil's six o'clock bus'?" Usagi exclaimed as everything came together in her mind. "I have to save Rei-chan!" She tossed the Luna Pen up into the air, the jewel on the top of it sparkling in the light, and cried out, "Moon Power! Change into a stewardess!" Light flashed around her and her clothing shifted into a stewardess's uniform.

"Usagi-chan? Why a stewardess?" Luna asked as Usagi dashed towards the bus.

"My mission is to ensure a safe and pleasant trip for the passengers!" Usagi replied, then leapt up to catch hold of an open window towards the end of the bus and start trying to pull herself up into it. Luna leapt up to cling to her legs, but Usagi's attempts to get into the bus involved a lot of thrashing of her legs, and Luna soon fell off with a soft cry.

Usagi looked back over her shoulder when she heard Luna's cry. "Luna?" That moment of inattention is when her grip slipped and she lost her hold on the window, toppling backwards. "Aaaah!" Before she could hit the ground, familiar arms wrapped around her, strong and warm, easing her fall. Before her eyes, she saw the bus pass fully into the hole, the hole closing behind it. "Rei-chan..." she whispered, staring at the place where the bus vanished.

"Are you alright?" the man holding her asked, and she turned to look up into Tuxedo Mask's familiar features.

"Yes... No... I couldn't hold on," she said quietly.

"And what would you have been able to do to help the kidnapped girls if you had been able to stay with the bus?" he asked gently, but with an underlying intensity.

"I-," she started to answer before realizing that unlike the previous times she'd met Tuxedo Mask, she wasn't Sailor Moon, she was just using the power of the Luna Pen to disguise herself. "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that. I really have to go now!" She pulled herself away from him abruptly, leaving him with a expression of surprise on his face and an arm reaching out towards her. Scooping up Luna, she dashed off, wondering exactly how much he'd seen and heard, if he'd figured out that she was Sailor Moon...

* * *

Jadeite frowned as he drove the bus through the dark passageway that joined their castle to the Earth's surface. For a moment, just before the bus entered the portal, he thought he had sensed another presence on the bus but no, the sole passenger was the shrine maiden he'd... persuaded to board the bus. He would just have to continue on with the charade until he lead the Sailor Senshi to their doom.

As he reached the room where all of his previous victims were sleeping, he let the Phantom Bus dissipate and turned to examine his latest captive. Kneeling down beside her sleeping form, he reached out to stroke her glossy hair gently out of her face. "So beautiful," he whispered to himself. "I've been attracted to her since I first saw her, this girl." Letting his hand rest gently on her forehead, an unusual sense of heat began to follow up his hand. Clearing his mind and concentrating on feeling her presence, he began to sense a buried power within her, like a banked fire ready to blaze once more when given the right fuel.

Withdrawing his hand, he watched her with a considering gaze. She was almost certainly the carrier of the power of one of the planets, destined to become a Sailor Senshi and thus his enemy. But Queen Beryl had already proved that the hearts of the planetary guardians were not immune to her powers of dark persuasion, and she would undoubtedly be pleased to add a warrior to their own ranks while depriving their enemies of a potential ally.

The knowledge of the pain the process of conversion would undoubtedly cause the girl almost made him hesitate, but the prospect of having her fight by his side and watching her blossom under his tutelage into something beautiful and deadly was too enticing to pass up. The pain would pass quickly enough, after all, and then she would be one of them.

Gently gathering the girl into his arms, he made his way through the shadowy hallways of the Dark Kingdom towards Queen Beryl's throne room. Part of the way towards his destination, Nephrite emerged from a side corridor and fell into step next to him. After a few moments of silence while Nephrite examined what Jadeite was carrying, he finally asked in a sardonic tone of voice, "So this is your choice for a match to my little apprentice?"

Jadeite looked at the other man through narrowed eyes. "Perhaps. She does hold potential for great power within her." Jadeite quickened his pace, and Nephrite allowed himself to be left behind the other commander, knowing that further prodding wouldn't get him anywhere at the present time. He had his own duties to attend to as well.

Finally reaching Queen Beryl's throne room, he found her seated on her throne, apparently waiting for him. "What brings you before me when I have not summoned you, Jadeite? Have you perhaps fulfilled your task already?" Her gaze rested levelly on what Jadeite was carrying in his arms.

Kneeling before her despite the awkwardness caused by his hold on the shrine maiden, Jadeite respectfully replied, "The Sailor Senshi still live, your Majesty, although I am certain they will be drawn into my trap soon. But I do bring an unexpected gift to you. I believe if you examine this girl, you will find the power of one of the guardian planets sleeping within her."

Queen Beryl arched one elegant eyebrow at him, before rising from her throne. "We shall see." Gliding to where Jadeite was holding the girl before him, she reached down and placed one fingertip on her forehead and channeled a weak amount of dark energy into the girl. She moaned a little in her sleep, and the planetary sigil of Mars flickered with red light on her brow for a few instants. Drawing back, Queen Beryl said, "You have done well, for once, in bringing her to me, Jadeite. Once I am done with her she will be quite an asset to our cause." A cold smile graced her features before she turned, gesturing sharply for him to follow her.

Queen Beryl left the throne room and led him downwards, deeper into the earth, until they entered a chamber he didn't remember having been in before. It was quite bare except for the rectangular slab of stone in the center of it, which had pieces of rope attached to its surface, obviously intended to be used to keep someone laying on the surface immobilized.

"Strap her down," Queen Beryl ordered, waving a hand imperiously at the stone slab. "I don't want her thrashing to disrupt my concentration."

Jadeite did as his Queen bid, making sure the shrine maiden was securely fastened to the surface. He backed away as Queen Beryl took up a position at the head of the stone slab, resting her long fingers on the girl's face. Dark energy flowed from those fingers into her, seeking for weaknesses in her heart that would allow Queen Beryl to twist her mind and memory, to mold her into a warrior that would serve the Queen's dark cause. The shrine maiden's body attempted to twist and turn, struggling to get away from the darkness, although she couldn't move much in her bonds. Her head was the only thing that remained still, locked into place by the touch of the Queen's hands. The only sign of struggle there was the red sigil of Mars that blazed brightly on her forehead.

The shadows deepened around Queen Beryl as she intensified her efforts to remake the girl before her into what she wished her to be. The sigil of Mars began to flicker and dim, a sign that the shrine maiden was weakening. As he watched Queen Beryl pour yet more energy into completing the girl's transformation, a small part of Jadeite wondered if this could have been done to him as well. He couldn't remember not serving Queen Beryl, of course, but from what he'd seen of the other girl that didn't necessarily mean anything... With a mental growl, he pushed the stray disloyal thought to the back of his mind. Serving his Queen was the reason he had been born and given the powers he held. That's all there was to him, and all that had ever been.

Shadows finally drifted across the girl's forehead and consumed the sigil until it turned completely black. A flare of dark power rippled down her body, transforming the shrine maiden's outfit she wore into something more... appropriate for a warrior of the Dark Kingdom. The Queen pulled herself away from the girl and Jadeite barely waited for her to motion him forward before approaching the slab and beginning to remove the ropes that held the girl to the table.

As he undid the bonds that held her, he examined the girl's new attire. Her fitted jacket was not that dissimilar to his own, although pure black instead of gray like his. It has no epaulettes and the high collar was replaced by a sailor-style one. An ornate brooch held the jacket closed at her right shoulder, while two smaller jeweled buttons fastened it at the waist. The jewels were a dark red that matched the piping and collar of the jacket. The pleated mid-thigh length skirt was dark red as well, and the high heeled shoes on her feet. Other than the footwear and accent color, it was almost identical to the outfit the other girl wore.

As he removed the last of the ropes binding her, she began to stir. Slowly she sat up, swinging her legs off the side of the table and holding a hand to her head. Her eyes were open but unfocused, seeming not to be taking in her surroundings. The sound of Queen Beryl's voice seemed to cut through the haze left by her experience, causing the girl to straighten herself and her eyes to focus on Queen Beryl's face.

"Who are you?" Queen Beryl questioned her. "And who do you serve?"

The girl rose to her feet and took a few steps towards Queen Beryl before sinking to one knee before her, although she did not lower her gaze. "I am the Dark Senshi of Mars, who wields the destructive fury of the flames, and I serve you, my Queen," Mars replied. "What tasks do you have to set before me?" she continued, her violet eyes glinting with anticipation.

Queen Beryl smiled with cold satisfaction before she began giving her instructions.

* * *

After Usagi was sure that Tuxedo Mask hadn't followed her, she slowed down and found a place where she could contact Ami over their new watches. Usagi and Luna explained what had happened with the Phantom Bus to Ami. They decided that, because of the method of transportation the Dark Kingdom was using, the only way for them to find out where the kidnapped girls were being taken and rescue them was to have Ami and Usagi ride the Phantom Bus and have Luna track them. Wanting to rescue the kidnapped girls as soon as possible, they agreed to meet in front of the Hikawa Shrine the next evening shortly before the Phantom Bus would be making its rounds again.

School felt even longer and more boring than usual to Usagi the next day, and she had trouble concentrating on playing the video games at the Crown Arcade Parlor while she was killing time before heading over to the Shrine with Luna. Worries about what could be happening to Rei kept on intruding. Usagi eventually just gave up and made her way to the Shrine, arriving there early. She sat down at the bottom of the steps leading up to the Shrine to wait for Ami, petting Luna idly.

Usagi didn't have to wait too long for Ami to arrive. Luna set up a computer and put on a headset; Usagi had to stifle giggles at the odd sight of a cat wearing a headset. "Okay, with this equipment I'll be able to keep track of you and contact you on your communicator watches," Luna said. "Please be careful, girls. We don't know where the portal will lead to or if the enemy will have laid a trap for you. Be ready to transform at a moment's notice."

Ami nodded, and Usagi said, "We'll be careful." Then they turned and walked over to the bus stop to wait for the Phantom Bus to show up. Usagi fidgeted as they stood there waiting, nervousness about what they might have to face creeping up on her. When the bus pulled up, its sign saying 'Red 66: Via Sendai Hill', Usagi took a deep breath and got on the bus, Ami following behind her. After paying their fares under the watchful eye of the woman driving the bus, they took seats towards the middle of the bus.

As the bus pulled away from the curb and down the street, Ami and Usagi felt sleepiness start to creep up on them. Knowing that the sudden urge to fall asleep had to be some trick of the enemy, they resisted the feeling, shifting around in their sleep and even pinching themselves to keep themselves awake. The feelings of sleepiness faded soon after they started resisting it, but by that time the bus had reached the dark portal and was passing into it. They entered into a dark tunnel lit only by small pinpoints of light, the bus continuing to move forward even though there no longer seemed to be anything solid under the wheels.

Several minutes passed as they moved through the darkness, before stone walls and arches appeared around them and they could hear the sound of the bus's wheels driving over stone tiles. The bus came to a halt, and Ami and Usagi had just stood up when the bus just disintegrated around them. They landed on their feet with some difficulty, and the noise caused the bus driver to turn around and face them. "You didn't fall asleep?" she asked rhetorically. "Odd, but I guess I'll just have to drain you into unconsciousness instead." She smiled cruelly as her features became inhuman and her fingers sharpened into claws.

Since they had seen this kind of strange transformation before, the girls wasted no time calling out their transformation phrases.

"Moon Prism Power, Make-Up!"  
"Mercury Power, Make-Up!"

In a swirl of lights and ribbons, the pair of girls became Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury. Sailor Moon posed and shouted, "I can't allow you to lock up innocent people in a place like this! I am Sailor Moon, and in the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"

Placing one hand on her tiara, Sailor Moon pulled it off her forehead, causing it to transform into a flat ring that was ideal for being thrown. "Moon Tiara Boomerang!" The tiara sliced through the air after she threw it, carving its way through the youma, which started to dissolve into dust, before returning to Sailor Moon's hand and being returned to her forehead.

"Yay!" Sailor Moon cheered. "I think we're getting better at this, that was a lot easier than the previous ones."

"Maybe," Mercury replied. "Or maybe that one wasn't intended to be difficult to defeat and there is stronger opposition lurking here."

"Oh." Sailor Moon's face fell, but only for a few moments before her usual smile reasserted itself. "Let's hurry up and find the kidnapped girls and have Luna get us all out of here, then."

They both started looking around for the kidnapped girls, quickly spotting where their sleeping forms were all huddled together. Sailor Moon didn't see Rei in among them, though, and continued to look around until she noticed another form sprawled on the stone floor a short distance from the rest of the girls, dark hair fanning out around her like a pool of silk. "Rei-chan!" Sailor Moon cried out and starting rushing towards her.

"Wait, Sailor Moon! Something doesn't seem right about what she's wearing...!" Sailor Mercury's cautionary words flowed past Sailor Moon without them registering. Sailor Moon reached where Rei was lying and bent down to gently shake her shoulder in an attempt to wake her.

The instant Sailor Moon's gloved hand touched her, Rei's violet eyes snapped open and she raised one hand towards Sailor Moon, then cried out, "Dark Flames!" A torrent of purple-black fire shot out of her hand, scorching through the space that Sailor Moon had occupied just moments before. Rei's sudden motion had caused Sailor Moon to step back in surprise, tripping in the process and landing on her butt, causing Rei's attack to miss.

Sailor Mercury quickly called out, "Mercury Aqua Mist!" Fog spread from her hands to cloak the area in mist, blocking Rei's view of Sailor Moon. Sailor Moon scrambled to her feet and backed away from Rei, heading roughly in the direction that she remembered Sailor Mercury to be in. The temperature in the area began rising, and the fog evaporated to reveal Rei standing with her hands on her hips, a nimbus of dark flame surrounding her.

The flames around her dissipated and Rei smirked maliciously, making a shiver run down Sailor Moon's spine. "Cute trick, but nothing I couldn't handle. Care to try again?" A sinking feeling in her stomach joined the shiver when she finally noticed Rei's different - and altogether more sinister looking - outfit.

"Why are you acting like this, Rei-chan? What did they do to you!" Sailor Moon felt her eyes begin to burn with tears. If only she hadn't lost her grip on the bus yesterday...!

Rei's eyes narrowed. "The name Hino Rei no longer holds any meaning for me. I am the Dark Senshi of Mars, and I will destroy you!" She flung another jet of dark flames from her hand toward Sailor Moon, forcing Sailor Moon to dodge out of its way.

_The enemy... They must have brainwashed Rei-chan into following them!_ "I can't fight Rei-chan like this, Luna! Oh, this is all my fault!" Sailor Moon sniffled, trying to keep the tears welling in eyes from spilling over and running down her cheeks.

Luna's voice crackled from the watch communicator Sailor Moon wore. "Don't cry! If you cry and emit your supersonic waves, the world you're in will destabilize! You won't be able to rescue everyone!"

Sailor Moon pushed back her tears with effort. "What should I do, Luna?"

"Attack with your tiara, Usagi-chan!"

"Moon Tiara Boomerang!" Pulling off her tiara once more, she threw it at Dark Mars, but her reluctance to hurt Rei must have affected her aim, causing it to miss Dark Mars by inches. One of Dark Mars's hands shot out as the tiara went by and grabbed it.

"Such a weak little toy," Dark Mars sneered.

"She fell into the trap!" Luna's voice came through the communicator once more as the tiara slipped out of Dark Mars's hand and wrapped itself around Dark Mars's torso, thicken to trap her arms at her sides.

"Quickly, Usagi-chan!" Luna ordered through the communicator. "Assemble everyone in one place! The tiara won't hold her forever and the longer you fight, the more likely the dimension is to collapse!"

"Gotcha, Luna!" Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury ran over to where all the unconscious girls were, while Dark Mars maneuvered her hands so she could touch the tiara and generated flames around them to melt her way through the metal. Sailor Moon double-checked to make sure they had everyone, then said to Luna over the communicator, "We've got everyone, so get us out of here!"

The sound of metal fragments announced Dark Mars's escape from Sailor Moon's tiara, but before Dark Mars could do more than raise a hand towards them, the Sailor Senshi and the unconscious girls disappeared in a flash of light. Dark Mars snarled in frustration at their escape, before dashing away from the slowly collapsing dimension tunnel and into the Dark Kingdom proper. Queen Beryl would be most upset with her, and Jadeite-sama would be disappointed in her. She wasn't sure which bothered her more.

* * *

A while later, Luna, Ami, and Usagi were gathered together in the living room of Ami's house to discuss what had happened. After Luna had safely brought them all back to the Sendai Hill bus stop, the unconscious girls started waking up with no memories of what had happened after they got on the Phantom Bus. They had explained to the girls who had been kidnapped what had happened, then quickly left before awkward questions could be asked or the cops could show up. Luna had insisted on holding a planning session immediately, so after the girls had transformed back into their normal selves they'd gone to Ami's house because Ami's mother was working an evening shift at the hospital and wouldn't be home until late that night.

The living room of Ami's house was decorated in a modern and elegant minimalist style. It was kept quite spotless as well, and Usagi briefly wondered how Ami's mom could keep it so clean when she appeared to work so much, before it occurred to her that Ami's mom made enough money that she could hire someone to keep things clean. Usagi was curled up in one corner of the couch, hugging a pillow to her chest, while Ami sat towards the other end and described what she'd seen after they passed through the portal.

Once Ami was finished with her tale, Luna asked, "Do either of you remember seeing any sort of symbol on Dark Mars's forehead."

Usagi shook her head; She'd been too busy trying to dodge the attacks to have noticed if there was anything on Dark Mars's forehead. But Ami nodded. "She had the symbol of Mars on her forehead. It was black, but it didn't really look like a tattoo, it was more like some sort of strange birthmark."

Luna nodded. "That corresponds with the reading I was getting on her attacks. Her attacks drew on the energy of the planet Mars, which only the Sailor Senshi of Mars would be able to do, but there was something else... something tainting that power. She must be the true Sailor Mars, and the enemy must have taken advantage of her power not having been awakened yet to twist her into... into that dark mockery of a Sailor Senshi." Luna managed to look both disgusted and furious at the same time, quite a feat for a cat.

"Luna?" Ami asked in a quiet voice. "Could... Could they do that to one of us?" Usagi turned to look at Luna with her breath caught in her throat, waiting for Luna to answer, a sudden fear gripping her heart.

Luna shook her head. "It is nigh impossible to corrupt a Sailor Senshi who's awakened their powers against their will. The enemy would have to practically kill you to accomplish it. It would be much simpler for them to simply kill you."

Ami nodded and Usagi started breathing again, her fear easing somewhat knowing that neither she nor Ami would be mind-controlled into hurting people, not that the enemy trying to kill her instead was a particularly reassuring prospect.

"It does make it more imperative for us to locate and awaken the rest of the Sailor Senshi, however," Luna continued. "That will primarily be my responsibility, however, since there isn't much you two can do to help until I've narrowed down the potential candidates."

Ami looked thoughtful. "Luna, do you know of any way we could fix what the enemy did to Rei-chan?"

Luna frowned. "This isn't something I'd encountered in the past, so I can't say for certain what would be able to undo the brainwashing. The Phantom Silver Crystal would undoubtedly have enough power to undo it, and its power is well-suited to purifying evil influences. However, it can only be wielded to its full potential by the Princess."

"Then we'll just have to find the Princess and the crystal and have her fix Rei-chan with it," Usagi stated with a surprising amount of determination.

Luna blinked at Usagi, puzzled by her unusual demeanor, but before Luna could say anything, Ami asked, "Is there anything you can tell us about the Princess that might help our search, such as where she comes from?"

"I can't tell you very much about the Princess yet, unfortunately," Luna replied. "I think some sort of seal has been placed on her so she won't be recognized, however."

"A seal?" Ami asked. "Why would something like that be necessary?"

"There's a high probability that the Princess has the Phantom Silver Crystal. It's certain that everyone has their eyes on the holy stone, the Phantom Silver Crystal, and the unlimited power it carries. But if it's used for evil, we'll be in a terrible situation.

"When the time is right, the seal on the Princess's identity should break, but the enemy will know who she is then, as well. So we need to try to find her before that time if possible.

"Now, it's getting late and I think we've covered everything we can at this time. Usagi-chan needs to go home before her family gets too worried," Luna finished.

Usagi rolled her eyes. "You just have to boss me around all the time, don't you Luna?" she sighed, but picked up the cat and said her goodbyes to Ami, put her shoes back on, and started walking to the closest bus stop.

Several moments passed in silence save for the noises of the city around them and the sound of Usagi's shoes on the pavement. Finally, Luna asked softly, "Are you feeling alright, Usagi-chan? You've been quieter and more serious than usual this evening."

Usagi sighed, looking down at her feet sadly. "It's just... I feel like what's happened to Rei-chan's my fault, because my fingers slipped and I wasn't able to rescue her before the enemy had a chance to do whatever they did to her."

Luna butted her head against Usagi's chin in an affectionate gesture. "We don't know what would have happened if you'd followed them right away. It's obvious the enemy set up the whole thing as a way to try to trap you in their own territory. You might have been able to defeat who ever would have been waiting there and rescued the kidnapped girls, but you might have gotten yourself into more trouble than you could handle and I'm not sure I would have been able to contact Ami and get her there in time to help you. Things might have ended up working out better this way."

Usagi gave Luna a small smile, but her eyes were still sad. "Thank you for trying to cheer me up, Luna." The girl and the cat continued on their way home.

* * *

Jadeite found himself kneeling before Queen Beryl again, this time with Dark Mars also kneeling, a little bit to his right and behind him, her long purple-black hair trailing over the floor.

"Your plan to get rid of the Sailor Senshi failed, Jadeite. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Please forgive me, my Queen. They had not shown any ability to travel dimensionally before, so their means of escape was unanticipated. Prior to that, Dark Mars was faring quite well against them and the youma was never intended to be a serious threat, of course."

Queen Beryl considered his words for several long moments as sweat trickled down Jadeite's face. "I will not punish you for your failure this time, Jadeite, because you have helped me find another warrior for our cause." Her gaze flicked to where Dark Mars was kneeling for a moment before returning to Jadeite. "Although I hope she is more successful in the future. But I will give you a considerable amount of time to think about how you could have succeeded instead of failed before entrusting you with any further missions. Nephrite!"

Nephrite stepped forward from where he had been lounging against a wall again and saluted Queen Beryl with a fist over his heart. "Yes, my Queen?"

"I will grant your desire to take over the collecting of energy and the search for the Phantom Silver Crystal. But you had best be more successful than Jadeite has been." Jadeite grimaced, but didn't say anything.

"Of course, my Queen," Nephrite replied and turned to leave.

"One last thing, Nephrite." Nephrite turned back towards her. "I want to see what your young apprentice can do as well."

"As you say, my Queen."

* * *

Late that night, in a secret basement below the Crown Arcade Parlor only accessible through the Sailor V game, Luna was using the computer systems there to consult with another about the latest developments. The video screen showed a white cat with a crescent moon on his forehead just like Luna's. Luna had just finished her account of the new information they'd found out and the conclusions they'd come to.

"What the enemy did to Mars worries me, Artemis," Luna said to the other cat she was talking to. "It's too reminiscent of what happened to the people of the Earth before the end of the Silver Millennium. What if the evil that destroyed the Silver Millennium has been revived? Even with the Phantom Silver Crystal, Queen Serenity wasn't able to do anything but seal it inside the Earth."

"Don't go borrowing trouble, Luna," Artemis replied in a softer tone than his words would suggest. "We don't know for certain that that is what has happened. As well, the Queen was despairing when that happened, the Princess will have a better chance against it."

Luna sighed. "I know. But whoever the enemy is, they've already turned one of the Sailor Senshi to their side. We don't know where Jupiter is or who she is, they could already have her working for them. We're not having any luck finding the Princess or the Phantom Silver Crystal, and we can't afford to have the enemy find them first. So pardon me for being a little pessimistic at the moment."

"We may just stumble across Jupiter like you did with Mercury and Mars. And the magic preventing us from locating the Princess easily will stymie the enemy just as much. We should prepare for what might go wrong, but we shouldn't give up hope yet. Not until the fat lady sings."

Luna shook her head and said, "You use the strangest Earth expressions, Artemis." But she had a slight smile on her face.

"I try my best, milady." Sobering, Artemis continued, "If things do continue to get worse, I can have the Sailor Senshi I've been training join yours to help them. I know you wanted to have them gain more experience first, but her help may be necessary if they end up facing two corrupted Sailor Senshi along with whatever other forces the enemy has."

Luna nodded. "Thank you for the offer, even though I hope taking you up on it won't be necessary."

"I hope so, too."

* * *

**Author's Notes**

Manga dialogue is taken from Alex Glover's newer translations from the Japanese manga, but I've tweaked it slightly in a place or two. If some of the attack names used seem slightly odd, it's probably because of 1) the manga using different names for some attacks than the anime did, and 2) Alex Glover using the rereleased versions of the Japanese manga, which altered the name of Sailor Moon's tiara attack from 'Moon Frisbee' to 'Moon Tiara Boomerang' and gave names to attacks that had previously been nameless in the manga, like Mercury's mist-creating attack. Apparently the changes were made to correspond with the attack names used in the live-action version.

The mysterious third commander in this chapter isn't Zoisite or Kunzite, nor is he any kind of clone or duplicate of them. (Which isn't to say that he has absolutely no relation to either of those characters.) He's an original character, with a background in his Silver Millennium era past life that makes his current role as a commander of the Dark Kingdom quite appropriate.

Nephrite's apprentice, on the other hand, is a well-known character from the series, and who she is probably isn't that difficult to guess. She'll be showing up next chapter, in any case.

As for why Zoisite and Kunzite aren't part of the Dark Kingdom, you'll just have to keep reading to find out. ;)


	2. Chapter 2

**Fractured Loyalties**  
Chapter 2: Unexpected Allies

By Contrail

**Disclaimer:** Sailor Moon was created by Naoko Takeuchi, not me, and I'm using the characters and setting without her permission. I'm not making any money off of this.

* * *

All Mamoru could see around him was featureless, swirling mists save for the silhouette of a woman with long hair that was barely visible through them.

"The Phantom Silver Crystal..." The mysterious woman's voice cut through the mists to reach him.

He moved closer to where she was standing, the mists clearing enough to see that she had her hands raised to her face. Her desperation and her need were almost palpable, and his heart ached with the desire to help her in any way he could. But his desire to see her face and know who she was was even greater than his desire to help her. Something told him that she held the answers to many mysteries, if he could only find her!

"Please, find the Phantom Silver Crystal," she asked of him again. He continued moving forwards toward her, her features becoming clearer as the mists cleared from between them. He could almost see her face. Just another step. He started to take it...

And he woke up.

_That dream again,_ he thought to himself, before sitting up in his bed and starting to rub the sleep from his eyes. It always ended just before he would get to see her face. He'd been having the dreams for several months now, although at first they had come once a week, if that. But the frequency of them had increased gradually, so that he now had the dreams more often than not.

The first few times he had had the dream, afterwards he had found himself wandering the streets of Tokyo as Tuxedo Mask, searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal. Those times, it had almost been like he was still dreaming. It wasn't until he had accepted those incidents as more than very strange dreams that he'd been able to become Tuxedo Mask at will and he'd stopped transforming automatically because of the dreams.

But he was no closer now to figuring out who the woman in the dreams was now than when the dreams started. He could never see her clearly enough to make out her features, tell what color hair she had, or even determine what her hairstyle looked like other than it left at least some of her long hair to trail around her.

And his search for the Phantom Silver Crystal wasn't going well either. All of the possible leads he'd found had turned out to be dead ends, and another person or group appeared to be searching for it as well, one who could brainwash people and create monstrous servants that could disguise themselves as ordinary humans. He didn't know why they wanted it, or what use they might be able to put it to once they had it, but he didn't trust the intentions of anyone who would do such things.

Then there was Sailor Moon. He didn't know if she was searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal herself, or if she was specifically an enemy of the ones who created those monsters. What he did know is that twice she had shown up and defeated the monsters, with a little bit of help from him. He wasn't entirely sure why he'd helped her on those occasions. He guessed he felt protective of her, a beautiful girl who looked like she was even younger than he was; She should be worrying about grades and boyfriends instead of fighting off monsters. She'd been so scared of them, but with just a little encouragement she'd been able to stand up and fight, defeating them. He admired that about her, his intriguing enigma.

Her identity was one thing he had a lead on, at least. He'd spotted a girl twice now investigating strange happenings while talking to her cat, who was able to answer her back in perfect Japanese, of all things. Yesterday he'd even seen her disguise herself by using some sort of magic pen and try to follow the bus responsible for all the kidnappings through some strange sort of portal. She'd failed to keep a hold of the accelerating bus, and had ended up landing in his arms. She'd refused to answer his questions and fled the scene, unfortunately. And she resembled Sailor Moon quite a bit, even having the same unusual hair style. A pity he hadn't noticed and remembered the name on the test paper she'd thrown at his head the first time they'd met instead of being distracted by the pathetically low test score.

Reaching over to his nightstand, Mamoru picked up his pocket watch and glanced at the time. Seeing that it was already 6:30 AM made him wince a little. He hadn't expected to spend so long just thinking in bed. Ah, well, at least he left enough time in his morning schedule that he wouldn't be late, even though he'd have to get ready for school a bit more quickly than usual.

Before too long, Mamoru was showered, dressed, fed, and waiting for the bus that would take him from his apartment to Moto Azabu High. The bus pulled up shortly after he arrived, and he spent the ride idly watching the scenery go by. Getting off at the closest bus stop to his school, he was soon surrounded by other students. He nodded in response to people waving at him and gave brief greetings to those who greeted him or that he recognized.

He had passed through the school gates and was halfway to the high school building when a stationary figure caught his eye. The person standing there was looking around as if he wasn't certain where to go. He was dressed in the school's uniform, but Mamoru thought he would have remembered the rather distinctive long, wavy wheat-blond hair if he'd seen it before. A new student who had transferred in, perhaps?

Seeing that no one else appeared to be interested in helping him, Mamoru walked up to him and said, "Excuse me, but are you new here?" The other student turned around, green eyes in a face so well-formed it was almost pretty focusing on him. A sudden feeling rose in Mamoru that the person in front of him was familiar, one he knew well, but he couldn't remember ever meeting anyone who even looked like him.

The other boy blinked at him for a moment, then a small smile crept on his face. "Yes, this is my first day, and I'm afraid I'm a little lost," he told Mamoru somewhat sheepishly.

Mamoru returned the smile. "Well, if you tell me what class you're in I should be able to tell you how to get there."

"I'm in class 2-A."

Mamoru chuckled. "That's the class I'm in, so I guess we'll be seeing a lot of each other this year. I'm Chiba Mamoru," he said, offering a hand for a handshake.

"Minamino Zoushou." Zoushou reached out and grasped the offered hand. As soon as their palms touched each other, a spate of images flashed through Mamoru's mind, none staying long enough for him to grasp them, but all of them feeling like they were from some time long ago, long enough for civilizations to rise and fall and rise again. Surprised, Mamoru quickly shook Zoushou's hand and let go, resisting an impulse examine his own hand. Zoushou was giving him an odd, almost calculating look, so he turned away.

Steading himself, Mamoru asked, "Let's go, you don't want to be late on your first day, do you?" He led the way into the building that housed the high school classes. During the morning classes Mamoru kept an eye on Zoushou, his curiosity having been stirred by the odd feelings Zoushou had caused when they met. Zoushou appeared to be somewhat quiet and very intelligent, paying close attention in class and answering all the questions he was asked correctly, although he never volunteered answers.

When the lunch bell rang, Mamoru made his way out to the school's courtyard, carrying his lunch. He would have been welcome enough at any of a few different clusters of students, but he chose to find a secluded spot so he could eat alone. He wanted to think more about that morning's events, and being around other people would just be a distraction. Part of him wished there was someone he could talk it over with, but he just wasn't close enough to anyone to trust them with his normal problems, let alone the strangeness that had recently entered his life.

Lost in thought, Mamoru didn't notice that someone had approached where he was sitting until he heard them clear their throat. Looking up, he saw Zoushou standing nest to him. There was no trace left of the somewhat calculating expression he'd had that morning; He looked a bit nervous, but otherwise open and friendly. "Can I eat lunch with you, Chiba-san?" Zoushou asked. "It's just, I haven't really had a chance to get to know anyone else yet..."

Well, the more he could learn about Zoushou, the easier it would be to figure out the odd feelings he'd gotten when they'd met. He didn't really have the heart to tell Zoushou to go away, either. "You can if you want to, Minamino-san," Mamoru replied easily.

Zoushou seated himself on the grass within easy conversational distance. "You don't have to be so formal towards me. I'd like it if you'd call me Zoushou-kun."

Mamoru nodded. "Okay, Zoushou-kun it is. Although... You don't seem the type to be that informal with someone you've just met."

Zoushou shrugged and smiled a little. "Not usually, but even though we met just this morning, it feels like I've known you for a long time."

Mamoru looked away from Zoushou while nodding. After a long moment, he said quietly, "I don't understand why, but I feel that way about you, too." He paused, then continued, "Have you lived in Tokyo for very long?"

Zoushou shook his head. "No, just for a short time, although I did when I was younger, before I went to live with my grandparents in Kyoto." His face turned curious. "Why do you ask?"

Mamoru wondered if he should tell Zoushou his true reasons, or just give him a non-answer, the way he did when anyone asked too personal of a question. His instincts were telling him Zoushou could be trusted, but... Deciding to go with his instincts, Mamoru said, "I can't remember anything from before I turned six, so I was just wondering if we might have known each other then."

Zoushou considered this statement for a few moments before answering. "I see. I don't think so, Tokyo is a large city and I think I would have remembered you if we had met before." He paused, then continued, "Do you... believe in reincarnation?"

Mamoru raised one eyebrow at him. "No, I haven't seen or read anything that would convince me that it happens."

Zoushou gave him an odd, melancholy smile then looked off to the side. "I felt like that once, too, but recently, well," Zoushou's green eyes turned back to look at him with surprising seriousness and intensity, "I found out some things that made me believe that it can happen." Even after he stopped talking, Zoushou's serious gaze remained on his, as if trying to find answers there. "Have you had any interesting dreams lately, Chiba-san?" he finally asked.

_He **can't** know about the dreams, there's no way he could..._ Feeling distinctly uneasy, Mamoru shot back a question of his own. "Do you always ask new acquaintances such weird and philosophical questions?"

Zoushou blinked once, then divert his gaze to the grass by his feet, his embarrassment evident. "Not usually. I'm sorry if the questions bothered you."

Relaxing a bit, Mamoru said lightly, "I guess I must be special, then."

Zoushou looked up at him again, eyes still serious. "I think you are, more than you realize right now."

Mamoru thought of all the strange things going on in his life and smiled to himself. "I don't know, I think I'm pretty special already," he said, his voice amused. Zoushou raised an eyebrow at him, but before Zoushou could say anything more, he changed the subject by asking, "What do you think of our classes so far?"

The rest of the lunch period passed with them eating their lunches and talking about the safe subject of school. It felt comfortable and somehow familiar to Mamoru, just talking and eating with Zoushou in a relaxed fashion. When the lunch bell rang, they both got up to return to class. As they walked back to the building, Mamoru hesitated, feeling oddly uncertain, then said, "Zoushou-kun... You can call me by my first name as well, if you'd like."

Mamoru knew he'd done the right thing when Zoushou smiled at him and said, "Thank you, Mamoru-san."

* * *

Kitano Kaneo sighed as he opened the door to his apartment and stepped into the entryway, pausing to remove his shoes. His job with his father's financial corporation was enjoyable if tiring at times, even though it was no longer the most important thing in his life. But duties from a life long gone and forgotten had been thrust upon him unexpectedly, taking precedence over everything else and placing him in situations he had never anticipated.

Kaneo called out a greeting to his decidedly younger roommate, and heard a reply come from the boy's room. He started walking towards there, wanting to ask his roommate a question or two. Zoushou looked up from the homework he was working on as Kaneo entered the room, stopping next to his desk.

"So how did your first day at Moto Azabu High go, Zoushou-kun?" Kaneo asked.

"Well, it looks like the coursework here will be more challenging than my last school, and..." Zoushou bit his lower lip nervously, then pressed on. "I think I found the Prince."

Kaneo gave him a sharp look at this news. "Truly?" he questioned.

Zoushou nodded, a smile tugging at his lips. "There's a student in the same class that I'm in named Chiba Mamoru. He's the right age, he matches what I can remember of what the Prince looked like, and when we first met... I just felt like I knew him." Zoushou's smile faded into a slight frown. "But I don't think that he remembers much if anything about the past. I talked to him at lunch, and he thought I was familiar, but that's all. And we shook hands when we first met; I think he picked up on some of my memories of the past when he did that, but if he did they only surprised and confused him."

Kaneo nodded, his silver eyes thoughtful. "For now, keep an eye on him, see if you can befriend him, and try to jog his memories of the past without being too obvious about it. We can't tell him why we're here until he remembers enough to not think that we're insane, but if you stay close to him with any luck you'll be there to protect him from the darkness if necessary."

Zoushou nodded. "I don't think becoming friends with him will be too difficult, although he doesn't seem to be someone who allows people to get close to him easily in this life. But some of the feelings of friendship he had for me before seem to be coming back to him, even if his memories aren't coming back yet."

"Good," Kaneo replied while staring off into the distance, lost in memories of the past. "This time we won't fail him," he said with a voice full of determination.

* * *

Over the next few days, Mamoru found himself spending a lot of time in school with Zoushou. His initial impression of Zoushou being quiet and intelligent, but friendly, was shown to be accurate, though he was more inclined to speak his mind when other people weren't around. Nothing weird happened after that first day, and Mamoru enjoyed talking with him. That was probably why Mamoru had agreed to show Zoushou around Juuban a bit after school today when Zoushou had asked him to. Since Mamoru wasn't sure what Zoushou wanted to see, they were mostly wandering around with Mamoru pointing out the occasional useful or interesting shop. They'd stopped for a while at the Crown Arcade Parlor because Zoushou had professed a great love for arcade games, although he'd seemed more interested in figuring out how they worked than actually playing them to Mamoru.

"Hey, what's with that really busy shop?" Zoushou asked, pointing in the direction of the shop he was talking about.

Looking at where Zoushou was pointing, he could see that a lot of people were going in and out of a completely unfamiliar shop. Looking up at its sign, he saw that it was named 'Jove Flower and Garden Shop'. Mamoru shrugged and answered, "I've never seen it before, it must have just opened."

"Why don't we go see what all of the fuss is about?"

"It's up to you, but they're probably just taking advantage of an opening sale."

Zoushou just shrugged and moved to join the line of customers waiting to enter the shop, with Mamoru following behind him. Once they got inside, Mamoru could see that the interior of the shop was clean and well lit, with a large number of different types of cut flowers on prominent display. Oddly, the flower that the shop had the most of was one he'd never seen before; There were signs that declared it to be a special variety only available at this shop. He stopped by one of the displays to take a closer look at them. The flowers looked a little bit like a lily but only had three petals each. They were a deep purple that was almost black, with a thin stripe of red running down the center of each petal. When he reached out and picked one of the flowers up, he got an odd feeling as he was holding it. The flower seemed... hungry in some strange fashion. Suppressing a shiver, Mamoru was about to put the flower back when a female voice coming from behind him said, "Our Jovian Purple Trililies are an excellent choice if you want to give someone something unique, sir, and you can only find them here."

"I was just looking around, miss," he said as he returned the flower to the display and turned to face the one who had addressed him. It was a tall girl who looked to be about his age, dressed in the store's uniform with her auburn hair tied up in a neat ponytail with a thin green ribbon.

"Ah, but sir," the girl pressed on, "these lovely flowers will soon be out of season. Surely your girlfriend would appreciate a small token of your regard?"

"I don't have one," he said shortly and turned away to find Zoushou. When he glanced back over his shoulder a few moments later, the girl was already busily trying to sell flowers to another customer. Finally spotting Zoushou through the crowd, he made his way over to him and said impatiently, "Let's get on out of here."

Zoushou raised an eyebrow at Mamoru but put down the flower he was looking at and followed him out of the little shop. Once they were a few feet away from the shop, Zoushou asked, "Why were you in such a hurry to leave there? It may not be the most exciting sort of place, but that's no reason to rush out of it."

"Their speciality flowers... I know it sounds strange, but I think there's something wrong with them... something dangerous." Mamoru looked over at Zoushou to see his reaction. Instead of the disbelief he was half expecting, Zoushou was looking at him with a serious, considering expression.

"Dangerous... You mean like the odd occurrences Sailor Moon investigates?" Zoushou asked.

"I think so."

"Well, let's hope that she's investigating this one as well, then."

Mamoru nodded, wishing that he knew a way to contact Sailor Moon. Even though he thought he'd figured out her civilian identity, he didn't know her full name and address, or even what school she went to. Still, if he couldn't let Sailor Moon know about it, at least he could investigate it himself. It had to be connected to the other incidents, which meant they might have information about the Phantom Silver Crystal that he didn't. He couldn't let any lead go unexplored.

* * *

Late that same night, Mamoru returned to investigate the store in the guise of Tuxedo Mask. He'd had an odd feeling of being watched as he'd made his way through the city, but he hadn't been able to spot anyone following him. Warily, he worked his way to the back of the flower shop and found a rear entrance to it. Trying the doorknob, he could tell that it was locked. Pulling out some thin metal rods with a sigh, Tuxedo Mask set to work on the locks, wishing he hadn't had reason to become as skilled at this task as he had. The final lock came open with a click, and he carefully opened the door, peering around the edge of it to see what kind of room it lead to.

It looked to be a storage room, with a maze of narrow aisles of shelves filled with gardening equipment and other supplies. An eerie greenish light came from further into the room, fluctuating in an odd rhythm reminiscent of a heartbeat. Tuxedo Mask moved through the doorway and silently shut the door behind him, then quietly crept towards the source of the light, making sure to keep himself concealed behind the shelves. Looking around the corner of a set of shelves, he finally saw it; On a worktable set up in a somewhat more open area, a plant that had to be the source of the flowers he had found so disturbing was sitting. Many flower stalks sprouted from the top of a squat, almost bulbous trunk that was the main source of the light he had spotted. The girl that had been tending the shop earlier, now wearing an odd looking black and green school uniform, was seated by the plant and caressing its trunk. She took out a crystal with her other hand and held it up towards the plant. The light flowed from the plant and into the crystal.

_This must be another plot to drain people's energy and brainwash them into finding the Phantom Silver Crystal,_ Tuxedo Mask thought to himself as he watched the girl extract the energy from the plant. _I can't just let this continue!_ He concentrated, causing a sharp-stemmed rose to materialize in his hand, then threw it at the plant. The flow of energy into the crystal ceased just moments before the rose impaled the trunk of the plant. The flowers wilted in seconds and the trunk began to shrivel up into a dead, desiccated shell.

The girl whirled around to face the direction the rose had come from and shouted, "Who's there?! How dare you hurt my precious plant!" Not wanting to get stuck fighting her in such narrow spaces, Tuxedo Mask abandoned all stealth and ran towards the entrance with his pulse pounding in his ears and the angry girl hot on his heels. He was almost to the door when he heard her cry out from behind him, "Gotcha! Dark Thunder!" He turned to look back and saw a torrent of black lightning baring down on him. There wasn't enough time for him to dodge; All he could do was brace himself for the blast. He couldn't help but give a short cry of pain as it slammed him into the door with enough force to rip the door off its hinges. He landed heavily on top of the door in the middle of the alleyway, sparks of the black lightning crackling over and through his body for several seconds afterward.

The girl calmly stepped through the now doorless doorway and raised one hand towards him. "For what you've done, you'll feel the wrath of the Dark Senshi of Jupiter! Dark Thunder!" She lashed out with the black lightning again. Tuxedo Mask gathered his strength to roll his somewhat battered body out of the way but before he could do so the blast unexpectedly struck a dome-like shield that had suddenly shimmered into existence around him.

A couple of seconds later he heard a familiar voice shout, "Phoenix Fire Strike!," from further down the alley. A large red and gold bird trailing flames flashed through the sky and dove at Dark Jupiter, bursting into a cloud of flames as it struck her. Dark Jupiter let out a shriek of pain and vanished in a bolt of black lightning.

Tuxedo Mask tried to sit up, closing his eyes and stifling a groan as numerous developing bruises and aches made themselves known because of the movement. He jumped a little when he felt a large hand grip his right shoulder to help steady him. "Are you all right?" a voice asked from the right, its attempt at impersonal calm not able to completely conceal the note of concern in it.

"I should be fine in a few moments," he replied as he opened his eyes and turned to look at the man who had his hand on his shoulder. The man had shoulder-length straight white hair even though he didn't look old enough to be going gray yet, and his serious silver eyes were looking Tuxedo Mask over as if he didn't quite believe that he wasn't hurt. Taking a good look at the man, he saw that his clothes were odd yet familiar; He was wearing a white uniform jacket with silver-gray piping, silver-gray pants, and black leather boots. A black cape with a silvery-gray lining was clasped to his shoulder by two onyx pins carved into the shape of a turtle. He was certain he'd seen this man in a uniform similar to this before, even though he couldn't remember when or where he had. The man's name was... "Kunzite." He didn't realize he'd said that aloud until Kunzite's gaze snapped up from examining him to meet his with a searching look.

The sound of boot steps on asphalt made them both look up to see who was coming towards them. The dome-like shield had disappear at some point when Tuxedo Mask hadn't been paying attention to it. The man walking towards them was wearing a uniform that matched Kunzite's, although it had no cape, the piping and pants were a deep green, and the pins on his shoulders were red and gold phoenixes. He recognized the green eyes and long curly blond hair, but his mind was supplying another name for the man as well... "Zoisite."

Zoisite's eyes widened a little, and he asked hopefully, "Do you remember us, Prince?"

"Not really, just your names and that I know you some-" Tuxedo Mask started to say before halting abruptly as something Zoisite said sunk in. "Wait, why are you calling me Prince??"

Kunzite gave Zoisite a long look that made him hang his head a bit, then said to Tuxedo Mask, "We'll explain what we know to you, but this isn't the place for it. If you know of someplace where we can talk privately, please lead the way."

The only private place Tuxedo Mask could think of was his apartment, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to take them there. He'd recognized who Zoisite was when he wasn't in that uniform already, and thought that Zoisite had figured out who was behind his mask as well. That wasn't the cause of his concerns. But he didn't know who Kunzite really was or if he could be trusted. From the way Zoisite was acting it looked like the two of them did know each other, though, and his instincts were telling him that he could trust Kunzite with anything. With a small sigh, he decided to trust Zoisite and his instincts, and ignore what his logical side was saying about how foolish it would be to trust someone he doesn't know anything about. Following his instincts instead of his logic; That was something he'd been doing a lot more often since his life had started getting strange.

"We can talk in my apartment. It's over this way," he said finally, turning to leave. Kunzite and Zoisite fell into step behind him as he lead the way to his apartment.

* * *

Dark Jupiter knelt before Queen Beryl after giving her report, still singed around the edges from the fire attack that had struck her. She was aware of the presence of her mentor, Nephrite, behind her, as well as Jadeite and his apprentice Mars. "So," Queen Beryl said in a surprisingly calm, even voice, "instead of staying to defeat those who interfered with your assigned task, you returned here with only the energy your plant collected to show for yourself?"

"My apologies, my Queen," she answered, "but I felt that it was more prudent to return with the energy that had been gathered than to battle three opponents whose strength and abilities are unknown to us and potentially lose everything."

"She just didn't want to get her pretty little curls singed anymore," Dark Mars hissed in a whisper deliberately loud enough to carry to her.

Refusing in show Queen Beryl disrespect by moving out of her kneeling position, Dark Jupiter merely clenched her fists and hissed back, "_You_ were too busy running from the Sailor Senshi to keep them from rescuing those hostages."

Dark Mars sniffed haughtily. "They only managed that because I had no idea they could do such a thing. By the time I figured out what they were doing, it was too late to stop them."

"Oh, really? You-"

"That's enough, _girls_." Queen Beryl's voice cut cleanly through their argument. "Since you did manage to bring back energy for our great ruler, Jupiter, I won't punish you for your failure this time. See that your performance improves in the future."

Dark Jupiter bowed her head respectfully. "I will not fail you next time, my Queen."

* * *

After the three men had reached Mamoru's simply furnished apartment, Kunzite and Zoisite let the uniforms they wore shift back into their regular clothes. Mamoru hesitated a moment before following their lead. He hadn't been surprised to see that Zoisite was Zoushou, but Mamoru didn't recognize who the well-dressed man Kunzite had become was at all. Before Mamoru could ask, he introduced himself as Kitano Kaneo.

"Kitano-san, you said you would tell me what you know know about what's going on once we were somewhere we wouldn't be disturbed, correct?" Mamoru asked as he took a seat in the chair by his computer desk.

Kaneo and Zoushou seated themselves on Mamoru's couch before Kaneo answered him. "Yes, I did." Kaneo took a few moments to collect his thoughts before saying, "In a past life, Zoushou and I were warriors of a grand kingdom that once ruled over the entire Earth, but destroyed itself due to the manipulations of an evil demon who called herself Metalia. Metalia was sealed away after everything was already in ruins, but recently the seal was broken. We were reborn in this time and place to keep Metalia from taking over the world again, and to find and protect the Prince we had pledged our loyalty to, who had been reborn as well."

Mamoru tensed a bit. "And you think that I'm the prince you're looking for," he stated with more calm than he felt.

"Yes. We believe you were once Endymion, Crown Prince of the Golden Kingdom of Earth," Kaneo stated with certainty.

Endymion... Something buried deep within him resonated in response to that name, recognizing it. "I don't remember this past you describe, or being a prince in a previous life. But, something tells me that you're right."

Zoushou gave him an encouraging smile. "I'm sure that you'll start remembering the past over time. My memories of the past are still somewhat fuzzy and fragmented. Kaneo-san's the one that really remembers what happened."

"Perhaps," Mamoru replied uncertainly. How likely was it that he would remember a previous life when he couldn't even recall the early years of this life? Changing the subject, he asked, "What do you know about those responsible for the recent energy draining schemes? Do you know why they would be searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal?"

"They are servants of Metalia, trying to restore her strength with energy stolen from others. She must still be weak from having been sealed away for so long." Mamoru nodded, this fit with what he had heard on that brainwashing disk they had been using.

Kaneo continued, "The Phantom Silver Crystal was a magical artifact said to possess limitless power. If Metalia ever gains possession of its power, she will become unstoppable. That is why her servants are trying so hard to find it, and why we can't let them succeed."

Mamoru felt cold inside at the idea of that happening. "We can't let them win," he agreed. "What about the girls who have been fighting them as well, Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury?"

"The Sailor Senshi served the Silver Millennium, a kingdom that existed on the Moon in the past. Sailor Mercury was one of the guardians of the Moon Princess. If they've been reborn, Princess Serenity must have been reborn as well, and they'll be trying to find her and the Phantom Silver Crystal. The royal line of the Moon were the ones who the Phantom Silver Crystal belonged to in the past."

"Princess Serenity..." Mamoru repeated in a whisper. Just the sound of that name sent what felt like a jolt of electricity through his body. The one the Phantom Silver Crystal belonged to... Could she be the one who begged him to find it in his dreams? He could ask them about it, but he didn't want to tell them about the dreams quite yet. They were special to him. But he still wanted to know more about her... "Was she... Did I know her, in the past?"

Kaneo paused to exchange an uncertain look with Zoushou before answering his question. "You were deeply in love with her, as she was with you," he said simply.

Mamoru stared at the carpet beneath his feet, unsettled by this information. He had been in love, with a princess... "But we died," he eventually said, not quite making a question of it.

Kaneo nodded. "You died protecting her during the fall of both kingdoms."

He'd loved her enough to give his life for her, and now they had both been reborn... If they met in this life, Mamoru wondered, would they fall in love again? Did he want to?

"Did you have anymore questions?" Kaneo asked, interrupting Mamoru's thoughts.

Mamoru shook his head. "I'll probably have more questions later, but that's enough information for now. Also, I need to go to sleep soon if I don't want to sleep through my classes tomorrow," he said somewhat wryly.

Kaneo nodded as he stood up. "Of course." He paused, then continued in a more formal tone, "Now that we have found you, my Prince, it is our duty to serve you again as we did before."

Mamoru shook his head a bit. "I appreciate the offer, but you don't have to do that. I may have been a prince back then, but that doesn't mean that you have to treat me like one now."

Zoushou said, "Serving you is why we were reborn. Our powers and memories would never have been awakened if you didn't need us."

Kaneo added, "We... did not serve you as we should have before. Please allow us to make amends for that now." Kaneo's silver eyes met his own, the regret and shame visible there showing how important this was to him.

Mamoru nodded to them. "You can serve me if you wish."

Zoushou returned his nod and gave him a small smile, while Kaneo simply said, "Thank you."

Goodbyes were exchanged, and then Kaneo and Zoushou left his apartment. After they were gone, Mamoru let out a sigh. He'd gotten the answers to some of his questions, but they had only raised more questions. But there was something reassuring about knowing that whatever happened, he wasn't facing this alone anymore.

* * *

**Author's Notes**

I know that Tuxedo Mask never actually throws roses in the manga, but I think it's kind of cute and (as this chapter demonstrates) it can come in handy sometimes.


End file.
